A reference voltage supply used in an integrated circuit may vary between integrated circuits, and has generally been decreasing over time. As the reference voltage supply and transistor sizes for integrated circuit devices continue to decrease, the operation of circuits can be affected. Such a decrease in a reference voltage of an integrated circuit device can affect memory elements of the integrated circuit device. For example, as the reference voltage for the integrated circuit device is decreased, the read range for memory elements of the device is decreased.
By way of example, with an approximate reference voltage of 1.8 volts in a conventional integrated circuit device, a PMOS differential pair is functional up to 0.85 volts of read voltage. However, as a supply voltage for integrated circuits continues to decrease below 1.8 volts, such as to 1.5 volts, it becomes more challenging for the PMOS differential pair to function because it is difficult to achieve the 0.85 volts of read voltage. More particularly, this reduction in reference voltage can affect the operation of an integrated circuit, such as accessing memory elements of the integrated circuit. Further, slew rates can also affect signals used to access memory elements of an integrated circuit, such as signal driven by address line drivers.
Accordingly, there is a need to improve read and write operations for an integrated circuit device.